


Dex's Laptop

by heresyourchecksir (irongirl4597)



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Character Study, M/M, Rated teen for language, sorta?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-09
Updated: 2017-05-09
Packaged: 2018-10-30 02:24:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,136
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10867050
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/irongirl4597/pseuds/heresyourchecksir
Summary: Dex's laptop has many stickers, only he didn't put most of them on there.





	Dex's Laptop

Dex’s laptop has many stickers, but he didn’t put most of them on there. If he had, it would have been much more organized. At least, that’s what he tells himself. The computer itself was a graduation gift from his grandparents. They were so proud of him graduating and getting a scholarship to Samwell that they offered to buy him any laptop he wanted, so long as it was within a reasonable price range. Will, he was still Will back then, spent so long researching different types of laptops and features and everything, it came as little shock that he became so overprotective of it. It immediately became his most prized possession, and he would do anything to keep it safe. He just didn’t expect everyone to want to decorate it for him.

The first sticker he received from his dad about three days before he left for school. His dad came into his room while he was packing.

“Son, I know you’re going to a liberal arts school, but be careful,” Mr. Poindexter said, “those liberals will say all sorts of things that aren’t true. Keep your vigilance up, and don’t forget where you came from.”

“I won’t, dad,” Will assured him.

“Well, just to be safe, here.” Mr. Poindexter handed his son a large rectangle sticker with the words ‘Samwell Republican’s’ written in blue on top of a red background. Will smiled half heartedly.

“You can put that on your laptop,” Mr. Poindexter pointed out, nodding towards the laptop sitting on Will’s desk.

“Do you want to put it on there for me?” Will asked reluctantly, holding it out. Mr. Poindexter smiled and took the sticker back. He unpeeled it and gently smoothed it onto the upper left hand corner of the computer. He took a minute to admire his handiwork before clearing his throat and turning back to Will.

“Keep packing, son. Your mother should have dinner ready in twenty minutes,” Mr. Poindexter instructed him.

“Yes sir,” Will said as he turned back to packing and did his best to ignore the pit forming in his stomach. 

#####  ***

The second sticker Will got after he became Dex. He also should have known better than to try and study at the Haus at that point. He sat in the kitchen, working on a coding assignment while Bitty blasted Beyonce and baked. He could hear Nursey, and Shitty playing Mario Kart in the living room, but so far no one had bothered him. He heard the front door slam open, and made a mental note to find out why the hinges creaked so badly. He heard Ransom and Holster’s excited voices in the living room, causing everyone in there to start making noise as well.

“What is goin’ on in there?” Bitty thought aloud as he went to investigate. Dex just rolled his eyes and turned back to his homework, doing his best to ignore the loudness of his teammates. A minute later Ransom and Holster entered the kitchen, followed by Bitty’s shouting.

“Dex bro!” Holster greeted, grinning too brightly.

“Hey,” Dex raised his hand halfheartedly, trying to keep focus.

“Dude, we’ve got stickers!” Ransom told him excitedly, waving small pieces of paper in Dex’s direction.

“Cool?” Dex replied, unsure of why he should care. His laptop screen jolted forward as Holster smacked a sticker onto it.

“DUDE! Not cool!!” Dex shouted, snatching his computer away, “Be careful with my laptop!”

“Oh, sorry bro,” Ransom said, gently patting the top of the screen.

“Yo, why is Poindexter shouting?” Nursey asked as he casually strolled in, a white Samwell Hockey sticker stuck to his forehead.

“They slapped a sticker onto my laptop!” Dex complained as Bitty and the rest of the guys entered the kitchen.

“So what? They’ve been putting them on everything. Chill,” Nursey shrugged. Dex glared at him. 

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure they even got one on Jack’s ass,” Shitty agreed, casually leaning against the doorframe.

“It’s free advertising!” Holster pointed out, smiling. Bitty frowned at him.

“Oh c’mon Bits, like you’ve never sneaked a look Jack’s most glorious assets,” Shitty challenged. “Even Dex here has admitted it’s shockingly large.”

“Yeah Bits, who here hasn’t taken a good look at Jack’s ass?” Nursey smirked. Dex rolled his eyes.

“I am not havin’ this conversation right now and y’all need to get out of my kitchen this instant,” Bitty said, waving them away. Holster started to say something, but Bitty held up a hand. “Don’t make me threaten pie privileges.” 

Ransom, Holster held up their hands in surrender and left the kitchen, taking Shitty, and Nursey with them. Dex took the opportunity to look at the sticker now housed on his laptop. It matched the sticker on Nursey’s forehead and now sat on the bottom right hand corner of the laptop, the words diagonal of how they should be. Dex just sighed and went back to his homework, hoping it would be the last of the sticker craziness.

#####  ***

The third, fourth, and fifth stickers technically weren’t stickers, and Dex’s laptop acquired them over a long period of time. How he got them was the same every time. He’d be hanging out with Lardo, either at the Haus, the library, or in the quad, working on homework while Lardo procrastinated by sketching and coloring small pieces of white hockey tape with makers. They’d both be working with quiet determination on their respective projects. When Lardo felt satisfied with the way they looked, she ripped the tape off the roll and gently smoothed it onto Dex’s laptop, in the middle of the left edge. The first time she did it, Dex still felt too intimidated by her to object. He found, after a time, that her art style felt soothing to look at when he was stressed, so he didn’t say anything the next two times either. He simply offered her a small smile of gratitude and went back to working, secretly feeling proud of the tiny pieces of art she gave him.

#####  ***

The sixth sticker was entirely Nursey’s fault. They were studying together in the library. Nursey kept jiggling his leg, making his lemongrass-infused water shake violently and distracting Dex. Dex tried to keep his cool, but his patience was quickly wearing thin.

“Would you please STOP THAT?” Dex hissed, trying to stay calm. Nursey looked up from his leather bound journal, his eyes surprised.

“What? Oh, yeah. Sorry,” Nursey stopped bouncing his leg, but a minute later it started up again.

“Nursey!” Dex said through barred teeth.

“Look man, I can’t help it,” Nursey said, leaning forward and tossing his notebook on the table. “If I could I would, and I’m trying, so cut me some slack.” Dex rolled his eyes. They’d started been getting along better, and he knew Chowder appreciated the change, so he took a deep breath and tried to relax.

“Fine,” he grumbled, “but if you keep doing it I’m going to start smacking you until stopping becomes pavlovian response.”

“Deal,” Nursey shrugged. He leaned forward to grab his notebook, his arm knocking into the open water bottle on the table. The bottle tipped over, sending lemongrass-infused water right towards Dex’s laptop. 

“SHIT!” Dex shouted and tried to move his laptop, but it was too late. His computer screen flickered twice before shutting off completely. Dex turned it over to get the water out and tried to turn it back on, but it didn’t work.

“Shit shit shit shit fuck shit fuck shit shit!!” Dex rapidly cursed as he held the power button.

“Oh man. Sorry bro,” Nursey apologized, sounding mildly concerned. Dex glared at him.

“Sorry bro? SORRY?” Dex finally snapped, no longer worried about the other students in the library or Chowder. “SORRY WON’T CUT IT NURSE.” 

“Woah, Poindexter, chill. It’s just a computer,” Nursey said, leaning away from Dex cautiously.

“Just a computer? This laptop is my life! It has all my projects for the rest of the semester on it, including the one due TOMORROW. It’s NOT  _ just  _ a computer. Not to me!” Dex shouted at him. He slammed the laptop shut and dumped his stuff in his bag before storming off.

“Where are you going?” Nursey called after him.

“CIT. Maybe they’ll be able to fix some of YOUR mess,” Dex shouted back. Other students stared at him in shock and contempt, but he couldn’t find it in himself to care. Luckily for Chowder and Nursey, CIT was able to fix it, leaving Dex only with a sticker on the upper right hand corner of his laptop with his name on it and a warning not to let water near his computer again. The next day, after Dex’s project had been successfully turned in, as Dex rewarded himself with an episode of  _ The X-Files _ , he heard a knock at the door. He opened it to find Nursey standing there, holding two coffee cups and looking very sheepish.

“Hey,” Nursey greeted, lifting one of the cups up in a slight wave.

“Hey.” Dex leaned against the doorframe.

“Look, I’m sorry about yesterday. I shouldn’t have had my water bottle open so close to your computer, and I shouldn’t have said what I said,” Nursey apologized. “I didn’t realize how important your computer is to you.” 

“I shouldn’t have snapped at you like I did. I was just stressed and then you spilled water on my computer and I took it out on you. Unfairly,” Dex said. “I’m sorry.

“I have coffee. Truce?” Nursey held up the two cups.

“Truce,” Dex agreed, taking the cup offered to him. He sipped it, tasting the straight black coffee he’d grown accustomed to.

“I’ll just be going then,” Nursey said with an awkward half wave. He turned and took a step away.

“Wait. I’m watching X-Files. Wanna join?” Dex offered, nodding back at his dorm room. Nursey’s face broke into a smile.

“Sure. I love me some aliens,” Nursey said, stepping inside. Dex just rolled his eyes. At least Chowder would be happy they’d stopped fighting. And maybe he wasn’t the only one. 

#####  ***

Christmas is always a busy time in the Poindexter household. Since his father was the oldest of his brothers, Dex’s family hosted all of his uncles and their families for Christmas. Dex woke up early to watch Netflix and relax before his family came, but his mother soon enlisted his help with decorating and re-organizing the room so everyone could fit. Dex used his laptop to play Christmas music while they worked, and forgot about it when his family started arriving. A few hours into the party, Dex’s mother pulled him away from the gaggle of cousins attempting to climb all over him.

“You might want to go plug in your laptop,” she told him before turning to the cousins “And you all might want to wash up before dinner.” 

Dex chuckled at their groans as he made his way towards the table. He grabbed his laptop and noticed four new stickers stuck to the top of it; three glittery snowflakes placed randomly on the black top, and one image of a  _ My Little Pony _ stuck right between the hockey tape and the samwell sticker. As he stared at it in slight horror, he felt a tug on his shirt. He looked down to see his four-year-old cousin Ava beaming up at him.

“I made it pretty!” she said, pointing at the stickers. “The snowflakes are sparkly and pretty. And Apple Jack is my favorite!”

“Is that so?” Dex asked in fake surprise, noticing the pony on Ava’s shirt as well.

“Uh-huh,” she nodded, then looked up at him with excited eyes. “Do you like it?”

“I love it,” he assured her. She flashed a brilliant smile of missing teeth and hugged his legs before running off. Dex smiled and shook his head, heading back to his room to plug his laptop in. Dex forgot about the stickers until he went back to the Haus after break. He sat on the green hazard couch and scrolled through the Netflix options. Nursey sat next to him, his lips tilted into a smug smile. They sat in silence for a minute before Nursey spoke up.

“Bro, I didn’t know you liked  _ My Little Pony _ ,” He said, his tone light and chirpy.

“I don’t,” Dex replied, not taking his eyes off the screen.

“Oh? Then why do you have a sticker of one on your laptop?” Nursey playfully challenged, gently nudging their shoulders together.

“My little cousin put it there,” Dex told him, nudging back harder.

“Sure, sure. Then why is it coming up in your ‘watch it again’?” Nursey asked, nodding at the screen. Sure enough, the title card for  _ My Little Pony _ sat in the watch again list, right next to  _ Parks and Recreation _ and  _ The X-Files _ .

“Sometimes I let her watch it on my Netflix. No big deal,” Dex shrugged, but he could already feel the tips of his ears burning.

“Riiiight,” Nursey said, raising an eyebrow.

“Fuck off Nursey,” Dex said, halfheartedly trying to push him off the couch. Nursey laughed and got up, heading to the kitchen for pie. 

In the upcoming weeks, Dex should have realized who kept hiding  _ My Little Pony  _ figures in his stuff. Though he huffed and grumbled through finding them all, he couldn’t be too mad when he got a picture from his aunt of Ava playing with all of the new ponies Dex had sent her.

#####  ***

A few weeks after coming back from Christmas break, Dex got his eighth sticker. He and Chowder were studying in the library when Nursey jogged over to them.

“Nursey! Hey!!” Chowder greeted, waving excitedly.

“Sup C? How’s it going?” Nursey asked, trying to regain some of his cool composure.

“Really good! I think we’ve almost got our project done,” Chowder replied, “The carousel was being kind of a bitch and not working, but Dex figured it out!”

“It was just a misplaced bracket,” Dex shrugged, secretly pleased with the praise.

“A misplaced bracket that could have failed us,” Chowder reminded him. Dex nodded nonchalantly and turned his attention back to Nursey.

“What’s?”

“Oh, uh. I just wanted to apologize for the  _ My Little Pony _ jokes I’ve been saying recently,” Nursey scratched the back of his head.

“Dude, don’t worry about it. I just sent all the dolls and cards to my little cousin. Apparently she’s started calling me ‘favorite cousin Billy’,” Dex shrugged it off.

“That’s adorable!” Chowder said, causing Dex to blush.

“Still, I should apologize. You were clearly uncomfortable with it, I should have stopped,” Nursey continued. “I got you something to say sorry.”

“Nursey, it’s fine. Let’s just call it even for all the times I’ve been an asshole to you.” Dex crossed his arms and tried to play it cool.

“Poindexter, let me give you the thing. Please,” Nursey insisted. Dex sighed.

“Fine. What is it?” 

Nursey reached into his backpack and pulled out a folder. He slid a thin piece of paper out and handed it to Dex. A thin brown hockey stick with black tape and border popped out from the white back. A warm feeling of affection bloomed in Dex’s chest.

“I know it’s not much, but I figured it’s a start?” Nursey shoved his hands in his pockets.

“It’s great,” Dex assured him. “Hey Chowder, where should I put it?” He gestured to the top of his laptop.

“Hmmm” Chowder considered it for a second, “I think between the tape and the Republican sticker.” 

“How about you do it for me?” Dex asked, handing him the sticker. Chowder gently pulled the sticker off its paper and placed it with deep concentration. Dex’s eyes flicked to Nursey, who was staring at the scene with a soft smile. Dex felt his heart jump and offered a smile back. He had a pretty good feeling about this semester.

 

#####  ***

The ninth sticker came on St. Patrick’s day, and Dex really hates St. Patrick’s Day. With his red hair, it was only a matter of time before some idiot pointed it out and made some stupid joke. Today it was several idiots, each with a less original than the other. After hearing the seventh irish joke of the day, Dex couldn’t handle it anymore. 

“I’m French!” he shouted at his lab partner, making everyone turn to look at him. Dex felt his face heat up uncomfortably. He grabbed his things, shoved them into his backpack, and bolted. He didn’t slow down until he saw the Haus in sight. He let loose a sigh of relief, hoping he could get away from the St. Patrick’s nightmare. He walked into the Haus, grabbed his laptop from his backpack, and made his way to the living room. Nursey sat on the left side of the hazard couch, giggling and watching  _ Parks and Rec _ . Dex flopped down onto the right side and opened his computer for some mindless web surfing. They sat together in comfortable quietness, punctuated only by Amy Poehler’s jokes and Nursey’s periodic giggles. After about ten minutes, Dex had almost forgotten about the incident in class. Nursey laughed again and leaned over, gently pressing something to the front of Dex’s laptop. Dex sighed and turned his laptop to look at the cover. A bright green pair of lips with a clover sticking out of it’s mouth and ‘Kiss me, I’m Irish’ sat next to the hockey stick sticker. Dex shoulders sagged and he glared at the giggling Nursey beside him.

“Why?” he asked God more than Nursey.

“It’s funny, cause you’re ginger,” Nursey giggled, ending with a hiccup.

“Yeah, haven’t heard that one in a while,” Dex rolled his eyes. “Why are you drunk at 2:30 in the afternoon on a Tuesday?”

“It’s St. Patrick's day, you leprechaun,” Nursey responded, gently poking Dex’s nose.

“I hate you,” Dex told him, but there was no bite to his words. Nursey just snuggled his head onto Dex’s shoulder and smiled smugly. Dex shifted to make his shoulder more comfortable, and ignored his rapidly beating heart. Maybe St. Patrick’s day wasn’t so bad after all.

 

#####  ***

Of all the stickers Dex’s laptop received, only one was put on by Dex himself. And it wasn’t even really a sticker, if you asked him. A heart shaped sticky note with a poem written on it held in place by tape definitely does not count as a sticker. It’s placed on the inside of his laptop, to the right of the trackpad. Nursey had given it to him as a three-month anniversary gift. The poem, Nursey said, had only ever been read by Dex, and Dex intended to keep it that way. Still, he kept it close, so that when he struggled with homework, or simply needed a pick-me-up, he could look at it and remember that he’s loved.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Fun fact: Did you know [ the name 'Poindexter' comes from the Old French words for 'Right Fist'?](https://www.ancestry.com/name-origin?surname=poindexter) Pretty cool? No? Okay.
> 
> Well, I hope you enjoyed this little fic of mine. Kudos and comments are greatly appreciated!! You can also find me at [heresyourchecksir](http://heresyourchecksir.tumblr.com/) on tumblr!


End file.
